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A Nourishing Life

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Months ago my juicer broke and I’ve been using one of those old school citrus juicers and having an orange, grapefruit and lime juice every morning before breakfast. Maybe once a week I’d buy a “proper” juice when out and about with O and the hubby… but it’s hard to spent $6.50 on a juice when I know I could make double the amount for half that price at home.

We thought about buying a new juicer but it’s low on the “thing we need to buy” list. So I just made do without. Hubby being the fixer he is, tried to soak the metal mesh basket of my juicer in vinegar and bicarb.

It was pretty clogged with “juice junk”… you could barely see through it. Perhaps that’s why my juicer wasn’t working anymore? It was worth a try.

I should add, my juicer is about 8 years old. I’m sure it’s ready to retire, and secretly I want a slow/cold press juicer anyway (xmas is coming, right? I’ve already researched the Hurom juicer!). I But today I cracked out the juicer again and gave it a whirl. And while it’s still not performing 100%, it worked!

I hate cheesecake. I always have. But raw cheesecake… well I could eat that every day! It’s soooo good. And whats better is it’s actually good for you! And so easy to make even though it doesn’t look like it. I wanted to share this post now, because with the weather warming up (at least here in Oz!) it’s a great dessert to take to a backyard BBQ or to have stashed in your own freezer as a sneaky dessert at night.

There’s lots of raw cheesecake recipes floating around lately. I’ve adapted this one from here. Because who doesn’t love berries? You can easily leave the berries out if you want though.

Raw Cheesecake

For the base:

3 cups macadamia nuts or peacans (I’ve tried both with happy results)

1 1/2 cups medjool dates, pitted

In a springform pan lightly spray some coconut oil on the base and then sprinkle a layer of desiccated coconut over it. This will prevent the crust from sticking.

In your food processor, combine the base ingredients well. You may need to add an extra date or two.

Press the mixture down firmly into your tin and then pop it in the freezer.

For the filling:

3 cups cashews, soaked for 2-3 hours in filtered water

3/4 cup lemon juice

3/4 cup raw honey or agave

3/4 cup coconut oil

1/2 cup water

1 tsp vanilla essence

Combine all the ingredients in your food processor and blend until smooth. Adjust to taste (I often put some more lemon juice in). Pour half or 3/4 of the mixture over the top of your base and tap the pan on the bench to remove air bubbles.

Place some frozen raspberries in the mixture… just gently press them in with your finger.

Add a handful of frozen berries to the remaining filling in your food processor and blend until the berries are combined. Pour this over the top of the plain filling and then place the cheesecake into your freezer carefully.

Leave it in your freezer until it’s firm… at least 4 hours. You can remove it from the pan once it’s frozen and slice it. I keep mine in the freezer and take a piece out onto the bench top 30 minutes before eating it. If you had this for a party, I’d recommend taking it from the freezer to your fridge about 3 hours before you want to eat it!

You could also make a raspberry sauce up to drizzle over it before serving by blending some dates and berries together. I usually just top it with some berries and maybe a drizzle of agave. Options for this cake are endless!

It’s not the cheapest of cakes to make but it does last quite a while, as it’s kept frozen, and it’s large!

I want to take this cake to someones house and see if they notice that it’s not a “real” cheesecake… that would be fun 😉

One day I really felt like apricots. But in a delicious snack form, preferably with coconut. I put my thinking cap on and this recipe came about. Hubby has declared them the best ever bliss balls I’ve made (and I’ve got quite a few in my recipe folder!).

You will need:

1 cup of almonds (I’ve also used macadamias with success)

1 cup of shredded coconut

10-12 medjool dates, pitted

1/2 tsp vanilla or almond essence

2 tbs water

1 tbs coconut oil, melted

1/4 cup (or more!) of dried apricots

Then do this:

Process the nuts and coconut in your food processor until reasonably fine but still a little crumbly.

Add the rest of the ingredients except the last ingredient. Process until a dough forms. Start with 10 dates but add more if the consistency isn’t doughy enough.

Add the apricots and pulse until combined. If you over-process it you won’t have chunks of apricot in your bliss balls and it’s just not the same 😉

Roll into balls with your hands. I get about 20-30 balls but it depends on the size you make them.

I then roll them through desiccated coconut. Crushed nuts would be nice instead. This step is entirely optional though.

Refrigerate for a couple of hours before consuming, and keep stored in the fridge in an air tight container.

This slice is to die for! I posted it on Instagram and Facebook and got a lot of requests for the recipe so I just had to share. It’s so easy to make, and is actually healthy for you, even though you feel a little bit naughty when eating it. I was pleasantly surprised by how fudgey and, well.. caramel-y the caramel layer was. It turned out perfectly! The best thing is the tiniest piece is so rich and sweet (but not an over-whelming type sweet) that you really don’t need much and it lasts forever!

Raw Caramel SliceFor the base:

2 cups dessicated coconut

12 medjool dates, pitted

1 tsp water

Put all ingredients in a food processor and whizz until combined. It will take a few minutes to come together, don’t despair! Start with 10 dates and add a couple extra if needed. I ended up using 12 and a half this time, as 10 wasn’t enough to make the mixture sticky.

Once combined well, press firmly into a slice tin lined with baking paper. I used a 7″ x 7″ pan. One of my favourite tricks is to use another piece of baking paper to press the mixture down. That way it won’t stick to your hands or be lifted by a spatula/spoon.

Pop the tray into your freezer.

For the caramel:

1 cup macadamia nuts

1 cup tightly packed medjool dates, pitted

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp water

Pulse the macadamias briefly. Add the rest of the ingredients and process until smooth. Be patient – it WILL become smooth! Remove the base from the freezer and spread it evenly on top. You can use a spatula, your fingers or another piece of baking paper to get an even coverage. Put it back in the freezer.

Place all ingredients in your processor and whizz it until it’s smooth. Pour evenly over the top of your caramel layer and again put it back in your freezer. After an hour or so, it should be set enough to slice up.

You can keep this in the fridge or freezer but I leave mine in the freezer and take a piece out a couple minutes before eating – the consistency is just right!

You could use cocoa instead of cacao but remember cacao is so much better for you! You could even add a tablespoon of it to the base if you like things chocolaty. Using a liquid sweetener such as agave instead of honey will make this dessert vegan.

Leave me a comment if you give this recipe a go, I’d love to hear your feedback!